Ram Singh Mehra And Others vs State Of Uttarakhand And Others

Pankaj Purohit, J

Heard learned Counsel for the parties.

Petitioners have sought issuance of a writ of mandamus commanding the respondents to pay minimum of pay scale to petitioners as per 7th Pay Commission and other consequential reliefs.

Facts of case shorn of unnecessary details are that petitioners are working as Maali in Raj Bhawan Udyan Nainital. Petitioner nos.1 and 2 are working since 2004 while petitioner no.3 is working since 1996 regularly. Petitioners were initially being paid Rs.5,200/- per month as wages which at present has reached to Rs.8,331/-. Petitioners have come up with the case that the work of petitioners is perennial in nature and services of petitioners are required by Raj Bhawan and since respondents are paying salary as per 7th Pay Commission to regularly appointed Maali in Raj Bhawan, at least petitioners are entitled to get minimum of pay scale i.e. Rs.18000/- plus D.A. which their counter-part in regular service are getting.

Respondents have filed their counter affidavits, one by respondent nos.2 to 4 and other by respondent no.1. Though a bulky counter affidavit is filed but from a perusal of same, it is reflected from page no.24 of counter affidavit of respondent nos.2 to 4 that earlier minimum pay scale as per 6th Pay Commission was sanctioned and granted to petitioners and their wages reached to Rs.5200/- per month.

It is contended by learned counsel for petitioners that once respondent-State is ready to pay and is paying minimum of pay scale in accordance with sixth pay commission, there should be nothing to preclude the respondents from paying minimum of pay scale to petitioners as per recommendations of 7th pay commission which is Rs.18000/- plus D.A. Since petitioners have been working with respondent –Department for last so many years, it is held time and again by Apex Court in several pronouncements including judgment in ‘State of Punjab and others v. Jagjit Singh and others’ reported in 2017 (1) SCC 148, wherein it is reiterated that citizens of youth of country is being exploited by paying a paltry sum as wages. Such action of the State is highly deprecated by the Hon’ble Apex Court. Relevant part of the said judgment is quoted below: -

“60. ……………….There can be no doubt, that the principle of ‘equal pay for equal work’ would be applicable to all the concerned temporary employees, so as to vest in them the right to claim wages, at par with the minimum of the pay-scale of regularly engaged Government employees, holding the same post.”

In this view of matter, the stand taken by respondents cannot sustain and petitioners are entitled to get minimum of pay scale as per seventh pay commission.

Accordingly, writ petition is allowed. Respondents are directed to pay minimum of pay scale to petitioners as per Seventh Pay Commission which is being paid to their counterparts in the Department, forthwith within a period of not later than eight weeks from today.

Pending application(s), if any, stands disposed of accordingly.